Methods and Systems for Treating Phosphogypsum-Containing Water

ABSTRACT

Methods for treating phosphogypsum-containing water are disclosed. The water may be treated so as to promote precipitation of one or more target constituents and to facilitate downstream membrane treatment. A coagulant may be added to promote phosphate recovery. Related systems are also disclosed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/720,566 filed on Aug. 21, 2018 and titled “METHOD AND SYSTEM TO TREAT PHOSPHOGYPSUM CONTAINING WASTEWATER,” U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/770,470 filed on Nov. 21, 2018 and titled “IMPROVED LIMING PROCESS OF ACIDIC WATER FOR PHOSPHATE RECOVERY AND SCALING REDUCTION FOR DOWNSTREAM PROCESSES,” U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/798,696 filed on Jan. 30, 2019 and titled “AMMONIA/AMMONIUM REDUCTION DURING INDUSTRIAL ACIDIC WASTEWATER TREATMENT,” and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/846,952 filed on May 13, 2019 and titled “USING MONO-VALENT CATION SELECTIVE AND ANION ION EXCHANGE MEMBRANES IN ELECTRODIALYSIS TO TREAT DOUBLE LIME TREATED POND WATER,” the entire disclosure of each of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE TECHNOLOGY

Aspects relate generally to water treatment and, more specifically, to the treatment of water containing phosphogypsum.

BACKGROUND

Phosphoric acid is a precursor compound in the manufacture of various common fertilizers. Phosphogypsum is a side product from the production of phosphoric acid by treating phosphate ore with sulfuric acid. The reaction produces phosphogypsum sludge, phosphoric acid, and a byproduct liquid stream. The byproduct stream is typically reused for cooling but ultimately stored in large open-air enclosures called phosphogypsum stacks or ponds.

This wastewater associated with and produced by phosphate manufacturing operations is typically acidic and typically contains various dissolved constituents such as fluoride, ammonia, silica, sulfate, calcium, heavy metals, phosphate, magnesium, colloidal matter, organic carbon, and, in some instances, radium (a radioactive element). The ponds associated with phosphate processing contain billions of gallons of this wastewater, e.g. 3 billion gallons each. Due to increasingly strict environmental regulations and annual rainfall, the stacks must be treated and closed by the operating companies. The pond water has become one of the largest liabilities of phosphoric acid producers. There is an urgent environmental need to treat this wastewater, particularly in environmentally sensitive areas, or areas where population growth has come into closer contact with phosphate processing sites. Treatment of this wastewater to reduce its toxicity and its volume has been a technological challenge of significant interest. The toxic or harmful contaminants must be either reduced or eliminated before treated water can be discharged into the environment.

One conventional approach that may be used to dispose of phosphogypsum wastewater is deep well injection. This process injects the wastewater deep underground between impermeable layers of rocks to avoid polluting fresh water supplies. Proper geology is required for deep well injection sites, and a permit must be obtained prior to injecting the process water underground. Further, phosphate is not recoverable from process water in a deep well injection process.

SUMMARY

In accordance with one or more aspects, a method of treating phosphogypsum-containing water is disclosed. The method may comprise promoting precipitation of at least one target constituent from the phosphogypsum-containing water to produce a supernatant water, introducing a free metal or salt thereof to the supernatant water to provide a pretreated supernatant water, subjecting the pretreated supernatant water to membrane separation to produce treated water having at least one predetermined discharge requirement, and discharging the treated water.

In some aspects, precipitation is promoted in a multi-stage process. Calcium and/or magnesium may be precipitated in a first precipitation step. Phosphate may be precipitated in a second precipitation step. The method may further comprise adjusting a pH level of the phosphogypsum-containing water to a first pH level in the first precipitation step. The method may further comprise adjusting the first pH level to a second pH level in the second precipitation step. In some aspects, the method may further comprise a third precipitation step.

In some aspects, the method may further comprise recovering calcium fluoride from a precipitation slurry associated with the first precipitation step. Likewise, the method may further comprise recovering phosphate from a precipitation slurry associated with the second precipitation step.

In some aspects, the free metal or salt thereof may be introduced to the supernatant water via chemical or electrolytic addition. The free metal or salt thereof may be an aluminum salt or an iron salt. The method may further comprise recovering phosphate from the pretreated supernatant following introduction of the free metal or salt thereof.

In some aspects, the membrane separation may involve one or more of nanofiltration, ultrafiltration, and reverse osmosis. The membrane separation may involve reverse osmosis and one of nanofiltration and ultrafiltration.

In some aspects, the predetermined discharge requirement pertains to a phosphorous or silica level. The method may further comprise recycling at least one reject stream back to a source of the phosphogypsum-containing water.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, a system for treating phosphogypsum-containing water is disclosed. The system may comprise a source of phosphogypsum-containing water, a pretreatment subsystem comprising at least one precipitation unit fluidly connected downstream of the phosphogypsum-containing water source, a source of a coagulant comprising a free metal or salt thereof fluidly connected to the pretreatment subsystem, a membrane separation subsystem fluidly connected downstream of the pretreatment subsystem and configured to produce treated water having at least one predetermined discharge requirement, and a treated water outlet.

In some aspects, the pretreatment subsystem may comprise at least two precipitation units. The source of the coagulant may comprise an electrocoagulation subsystem.

In some aspects, the membrane separation subsystem may comprise one or more of a nanofilter, an ultrafilter, and a reverse osmosis unit. The membrane separation subsystem may comprise a reverse osmosis unit and one of a nanofilter and an ultrafilter.

In some aspects, the pretreatment subsystem may further comprises at least one clarifier. The pretreatment subsystem may further comprise at least one filter press. The pretreatment subsystem may further comprise a settling pond.

In some aspects, the system may further comprise a sensor configured to detect at least one operational parameter associated with the water source, the pretreatment subsystem, the membrane separation subsystem, or the treated water outlet. The sensor may be a flow rate, pH, temperature, conductivity, hardness, or concentration sensor.

In some aspects, the system may further comprise a controller in communication with the at least one sensor and configured to adjust at least one operational parameter of the system. The controller may be configured to adjust a flow rate or pH level in response to input from the sensor. The controller may be configured to adjust fractionation among the at least one precipitation unit in order to optimize phosphate recovery. The controller may be configured to adjust an amount of the coagulant introduced in order to optimize phosphate recovery.

The disclosure contemplates all combinations of any one or more of the foregoing aspects and/or embodiments, as well as combinations with any one or more of the embodiments set forth in the detailed description and any examples.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are not intended to be drawn to scale. In the drawings, each identical or nearly identical component that is illustrated in various figures is represented by a like numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component may be labeled in every drawing. In the drawings:

FIG. 1-2 present process flow diagrams in accordance with one or more disclosed embodiments; and

FIG. 3 presents a process flow diagram including an additional solids removal step in accordance with one or more disclosed embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In accordance with one or more embodiments, water containing phosphogypsum may be efficiently brought to within preestablished environmental discharge limits. As used herein, the term phosphogypsum-containing water may interchangeably be referred to herein as wastewater or process water. Relevant discharge limits may be established by various local, state, federal, or private agencies. For example, the State of Florida has set a maximum conductivity limit of 1,275 μS/cm for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting. Conventionally, phosphogypsum wastewater may be treated and diluted by up to five to ten times in order to meet conductivity, concentration, and/or load-based limits for ammonia, fluoride, phosphorous, or other constituents. The water consumed for dilution is typically fresh or treated water that could be used for other purposes. The dilution water may be relatively expensive treated water, such as reverse osmosis product water. In at least some embodiments, a cost competitive alternative to conventional treatment methods is presented. In some embodiments, consumption of fresh water associated with environmental discharge may desirably be reduced. In at least some embodiments, there is no dilution prior to discharge.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, various product streams (i.e. phosphoric acid, calcium carbonate, and/or ammonium sulfate) may beneficially be recovered in conjunction with the wastewater treatment. In some embodiments, overall recovery rates may be significantly increased. In certain embodiments, a recovery rate of at least about 30%, 40%, 50%, or more may be achieved.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, phosphogypsum wastewater may originate from a phosphate manufacturing operation and be stored in a pond or stack. The phosphogypsum wastewater may be highly acidic, i.e. having a pH level of about 1.5 to about 2 and environmentally hazardous. A non-limiting example of the typical chemical composition of pond water is presented in Table 1. Beyond what is presented, the ammonia concentration may range from a few hundred ppm up to a few thousand ppm.

TABLE 1 Parameter* Range pH, Standard Units 1.6-2.1 Total Acidity, as CaCO₃ 20,000-60,000 Fluoride, as F  4,000-12,000 Phosphorus, as P 4,000-9,000 Silicon, as Si 1,000-3,000 Total Solids 20,000-50,000 Total Suspended Solids  50-250 Conductivity, umhos 15,000-40,000 Chlorides, as Cl  50-500 Sulfates, as SO₄  2,000-12,000 Sodium, as Na   50-3,000 Calcium, as Ca   50-1,500 Magnesium, as Mg  50-400 Aluminum, as Al   50-1,000 Chrome, as Cr 0.2-5.0 Zinc, as Zn 1.0-5.0 Iron, as Fe 100-250 Manganese, as Mn  5-30 NH₃—N, as N    0-1,200 Total Organic N, as N  3-30 Color, APHA units   20-4,000 *All values expressed as mg/L unless otherwise noted.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, wastewater containing phosphogypsum may be pretreated. Pretreatment may promote the removal of at least one target species and/or adjust one or more operational parameters in order to facilitate downstream operations. A pretreated supernatant may be delivered to downstream unit operations for further treatment.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, pretreatment may involve precipitation. Precipitation may be strategically staged so as to promote the removal of various target constituents in series. Different target constituents may precipitate out under different conditions. For example, a first target constituent may precipitate out at a first pH condition and a second target constituent may precipitate out at a second pH condition.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, pretreatment may involve adjusting a hardness level. In some non-limiting embodiments, magnesium and/or calcium levels may be targeted. The hardness level may be adjusted via precipitation in a first pretreatment stage.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, pretreatment may involve phosphate removal. Phosphate removal may be promoted via precipitation in a second pretreatment stage.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, pretreatment may involve adjusting a process stream to a first pH level in a first pretreatment stage to promote precipitation of a first target constituent. Pretreatment may subsequently involve adjusting a process stream to a second pH level from the first pH level in a second pretreatment stage to promote precipitation of a second target constituent.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, pretreatment may involve further promoting the recovery of one or more constituents, such as phosphorous or silica. In some embodiments, a coagulant may be introduced. In certain embodiments, a free metal or salt thereof may be strategically dosed as a coagulant. In some embodiments, an aluminum salt (i.e. aluminum sulfate) or an iron salt may be dosed as a coagulant. In at least some non-limiting embodiments, a multivalent metal coagulant may be strategically dosed.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, the coagulant may be introduced through chemical or electrolytic addition. Since the process water may contain saturated amounts of silica, among other species, addition of the free metals may coagulate and reduce silica levels to acceptable levels for downstream membrane processes. Chemical addition may involve addition of aluminum sulfate, sodium aluminate, iron chloride, or other catalyst. Electrolytic addition may involve electrolysis of anodes consisting of aluminum, other aluminum composites, iron/steel, or other material. As an example, any aluminum or iron salts available on the market (e.g. Al₂(SO₄)₃, AlCl₃, NaAlO₂, Al(NO₃)₃ can be possibly utilized as coagulant to reduce the silica content. It is possible to combine the salts that are acidic in aqueous solution and the ones that are basic together to reduce or eliminate the pH adjustment afterwards, e.g. Al(SO₄)₃+NaAlO₂.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, pretreatment may significantly increase the recovery efficiency of downstream unit operations. In some embodiments, pretreatment may be performed upstream of a membrane separation subsystem as further described herein.

A process flow diagram in accordance with one or more non-limiting embodiments is presented in FIG. 1. A first compound (i.e. limestone) may be introduced to achieve a first target pH level in order to promote a first precipitation. Clarification and filter press or any other related techniques known to those of skill in the art may be used to recover a first precipitate (i.e. calcium fluoride). The first precipitation may generally reduce a hardness level of a process stream entering a second precipitation. A second compound (i.e. slack lime) may be introduced to achieve a second target pH level in order to promote the second precipitation. The second pH level may generally be different than the first pH level. In at least some embodiments, the second pH level may be higher than the first pH level. The second precipitation may generally promote precipitation of a phosphate slurry that may be delivered for further processing and recovery. A coagulant may then be added to further promote phosphate recovery. A coagulant-dosed process stream may be introduced to a settling pond for a predetermined period of time, i.e. several hours. A pH level of a process stream in the settling pond may optionally be readjusted. The settling operation may generally promote precipitation of an additional phosphate slurry that may be delivered for further processing and recovery. A pretreated supernatant may then be delivered downstream for further processing, i.e. via membrane separation. For example, non-limiting membrane separation operations may include one or more of ultrafiltration (UF), nanofiltration (NF), and reverse osmosis (RO). FIG. 1 presents an embodiment in which NF and RO are implemented in series. FIG. 2. presents an alternative embodiment in which UF and staged RO are implemented in series.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, an additional solid waste recovery step may be incorporated as presented in FIG. 3. The additional solid waste recovery step may be associated with an intermediate pH level between the first and second pH levels.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, various pretreatment stages may be strategically controlled in order to promote recovery of various target compounds. Downstream recovery process may also be optimized. In some embodiments, an amount of coagulant, i.e. aluminum, added may be strategically controlled in order to optimize phosphate recovery and downstream processes. In some embodiments, fractionation (i.e. pH stopping points) associated with pretreatment precipitation may be strategically controlled to optimize recovery and downstream processes. Waiting periods, i.e. within clarifiers and the settling pond time can also be optimized or reduced.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, a treatment system may include at least one sensor configured to detect an operational parameter. For example, the sensor may be configured to detect an operational parameter associated with the source of pond water, the pretreatment system, i.e. a precipitation subsystem, the membrane subsystem, or the treated water outlet. In some non-limiting embodiments, the sensor may be a flow rate, pH, temperature, conductivity, hardness, or concentration sensor. In some embodiments, two or more sensors, e.g. a plurality of sensors, may be incorporated. The sensors may be strategically positioned throughout the system. The sensors may be interrelated and/or interconnected, for example, with respect to process control. The system may further include a controller in communication with the at least one sensor. The controller may be configured to provide a control signal in response to input from the sensor. For example, the controller may provide a control signal to actuate or adjust a valve of the system or subsystem thereof. In some non-limiting embodiments, the controller may be configured to adjust a flow rate or pH level in response to input from the sensor. The controller may adjust coagulant addition in response to sensor input. In this way, the controller may enable adjustment of one or more process parameters so as to produce one or more desirable product streams. The controller may be further configured to make a comparison between a measured value and a predetermined value, such as an established discharge requirement and to adjust various control settings accordingly.

The function and advantages of these and other embodiments can be better understood from the following examples. The examples are intended to be illustrative in nature and are not considered to be limiting the scope of the invention.

EXAMPLE 1

A process flow diagram according to FIG. 1 was lab tested and modelled. A projected water analysis from modelling is shown in Table 2A.

Phosphogypsum-containing sample pond water having a pH of about 2.7 was reacted with limestone to a target pH level of 4-4.5 on a bench-scale. After settling for approximately 20 minutes, the slurry was filtered to recover water to be combined with a supernatant decanted effluent stream (for increased overall water recovery). The solids were projected to have amounts of calcium fluoride, calcium phosphate, silica precipitates, to be further treated as solid waste. Further treatment of the combined supernatant from pH 4-4.5 to a target pH level of 7-7.5 was performed using slack lime (Ca(OH)₂) on the lab bench. This second precipitation step yielded a sizable portion of calcium phosphate precipitates. This slurry from the second clarifier is to be pumped to an upstream acid plant for recovery of phosphate. The value of the recovered phosphate to an active plant is considerable and should be noted. The supernatant that has been decanted from the second precipitation step after settling for approximately 20 minutes follows a third precipitation step. To reduce the silica and the phosphate in the second supernatant solution, aluminum was added as aluminum sulfate. Lab results of alum additions are shown in Table 2B for reduction in SiO2 levels. The reduction of the silica facilitates higher water recovery operations upstream. This treated supernatant was then introduced to a settling pond to settle out aluminum phosphate slurry, which may be further treated for recovery of phosphate, or be considered as solid waste. Effluent from the settling pond may be filtered in downstream NF/RO.

TABLE 2A Feed Supernatant from Supernatant from Supernatant from Parameter Unit (Apr. 10, 2018) Precipitation#1 Precipitation#2 Precipitation#3 Volume of sample mL 50 43 34 35 Mass of precipitate & dry — 3.53 1.07 0.2 Calcium mg/l as CaCO3 3310 4625 320 146 Magnesium mg/l as CaCO3 1510 915 43 34 Sodium mg/l as CaCO3 5490 6150 6150 6150 Potassium mg/l as CaCO3 370 500 500 500 Iron mg/l 159 0.0 0.0 0.0 Manganese mg/l 25 2.2 2.2 2.2 Aluminum mg/l 161 0.1 0.1 0.1 Barium mg/l 0 1.9 1.9 1.9 Strontium mg/l 48 48 48 48 Copper mg/l 0 — — — Zinc mg/l 18 — — — Bicarbonate mg/l as CaCO3 — — — Fluoride mg/l as CaCO3 19500 81 52 0 Chloride mg/l as CaCO3 262 262 262 262 Bromide mg/l as CaCO3 0 — — — Nitrate mg/l as CaCO3 46 12.3 12.3 12.3 Phosphate mg/l as CaCO3 51500 22430 4966 2092 Sulfate mg/l as CaCO3 7840 5097 4815 4911 pH 2.7 4.5 7.4 7.1 Turbidity NTU 28 — — — Conductivity μS/cm 36900 — — — Total Hardness mg/l as CaCO3 4631 — — — TOC mg/l 192 53 53 53 Mineral Acidity mg/l as CaCO3 26864 — — — Ammonia mg/l as CaCO3 4531 4531 4531 <4531 Total Silica mg/l as CaCO3 3045 451 183 101 Total Acidity mg/l as CaCO3 47633 — — —

TABLE 2B Ratio Al:SiO2 (mass) pH Time Elapsed (hr) Al SiO2 SiO2 (mg/L) 3.5 4.5 1 2 614 3.5 20 1 2 379 3.5 20 1 2 346 4.5 4.5 1 2 445 4.5 20 1 2 285 4.5 20 1 2 281 5.5 4.5 1 2 330 5.5 20 1 2 253 5.5 20 1 2 288 5.5 16 5 1 609 5.5 16 5 1 560 7.3 16 6 1 80 7.3 16 6 1 86 7.3 17 2 1 17 7.3 17 2 1 17 7.6 17 1 2 19 7.6 17 1 2 18 8.9 17 1 8 83 8.9 17 1 8 86 7.3 4 N/A N/A 186 7.3 4 N/A N/A 184 7.3 94 N/A N/A 155 7.3 94 N/A N/A 151 7.3 18 1 8 131 7.3 18 1 8 131 6.7 18 1 8 177 6.7 18 1 8 175 7.3 18 1 2 27 7.3 18 1 2 27 7.3 18 1 4 78

EXAMPLE 2

A process flow diagram according to FIG. 2 was lab tested and modelled for scale-up. A summary of scaled-up stream compositions can be seen on Table 3A. Phosphogypsum-containing sample pond water (500 mL) having a pH of about 2.0 was reacted with limestone (20.5 g) at ambient temperature to a target pH level of 3.8. After settling for approximately 30 minutes, the slurry was filtered to recover water to be combined with a supernatant decanted effluent stream (for increased overall water recovery, 90% liquid volume relative to feed). The solids were analyzed to have amounts of fluoride, phosphate, silica, and magnesium, >98%, >40%, 80%, and >25% by wt %, respectively, to be further treated as solid waste. Further treatment of the combined supernatant from pH 3.8 to a target pH level of 7.4 was performed using slack lime (Ca(OH)₂, 4 g) on the lab bench. This second precipitation step yielded a sizable portion of calcium phosphate precipitates (>45% phosphate wt % relative to feed). This slurry from the second clarifier is to be pumped to an upstream acid plant for recovery of phosphate. The value of the recovered phosphate to an active plant is considerable and would contribute to the overall economics. The supernatant that has been decanted (>75% of liquid volume relative to feed) from the second precipitation step after settling for approximately 30 minutes follows a third precipitation step. To reduce the silica and the phosphate in the second supernatant solution, electrocoagulation (EC) was used. (EC) was evaluated to reduce silica content in phosphogypsum-containing water without increasing the TDS burden. An electrocoagulation reactor was used with 15 mL/min flow of sample water with residence time of 30 minutes at varying current. The data on Table 3B clearly showed that EC can reduce silica in a much shorter time frame and more effective fashion compared to traditional chemical coagulation. Table 3C presents treated data and Table 3D presents control data.

In addition, the results further showed that EC (using aluminum electrodes) does not introduce excessive aluminum ions into the treated water which is highly desirable for downstream membrane processes to operate at higher recoveries. This treated supernatant was settled for 30 minutes and decanted. The precipitates from the EC step may be further treated for recovery of phosphate or be considered as solid waste. Effluent from the settling was analyzed via internal laboratory and an industrial projection software was used to model downstream membrane processes. Downstream membrane processes were modelled to be a UF followed by 2-pass RO system. Water recoveries for the UF and the 2-pass RO are 90%, 60%, and 80%, respectively. The 1^(st) pass RO uses SH30H-380 membranes and contains 1 stage with 112 pressure vessels (to achieve the scaled-up flowrates). The 2^(nd) pass RO uses BW30-400 membranes and contains 2 stages with 48 pressure vessels in each stage. Operating conditions for both passes are ambient 25 C with the first pass being low-pH RO and near neutral pH RO for the second pass. Antiscalant may be required and thus was modelled into the process. Chemtreat antiscalant was used at a dose of 8.7 mg/L going into the 1^(st) pass RO. There may be pH adjustment before going to the 1^(st) pass RO, thus sulfuric acid may be used to bring down the pH. 2^(nd) pass RO permeate is projected to meet NPDES discharge limits, and in some cases only a single pass RO is needed.

TABLE 3A Supernatant Supernatant Supernatant Pond Feed from from from Parameter Unit (Sep. 17, 2018) Preciptiation #1 Preciptiation #2 Preciptiation #3 UF Volumetric Flow GPM 6959 6207 5559 4460 5000 Calcium mg/L as CaCO3 3050 4625 320 3.57 3.57 Magnesium mg/L as CaCO3 1110 916 43 13.9 13.9 Sodium mg/L as CaCO3 5620 6150 6150 5010 5010 Potassium mg/L as CaCO3 450 500 500 290 290 Iron mg/L as ion 80 0 0 0.02 0.02 Manganese mg/L as ion 14 2 2 0.01 0.01 Aluminum mg/L as ion 108 0 0 0.08 0.08 Strontium mg/L as ion 39 2 2 0.03 0.03 HCO3 mg/L as CaCO3 <0.5 574.4 574.4 Bromide mg/L as CaCO3 <3 6.05 6.05 Fluoride mg/L as CaCO3 19000 81 52 1 1 Chloride mg/L as CaCO3 147 262 262 190 190 Nitrate mg/L as CaCO3 25 12 12 15.4 15.4 Phosphate mg/L as CaCO3 34100 22430 4966 1190 1190 Sulfate mg/L as CaCO3 7150 5097 4815 5910 5910 pH s.u. 2.0 3.8 7.4 8.54 8.54 TDS mg/L as ion 49863 Ammonia mg/L as CaCO3 4089 4089 4089 3325.01 3325.01 Total Silica mg/L as CaCO3 2233 451 183 49.29 49.29 RO1 RO2 RO1 RO2 Slurry from Silica Parameter Unit Permeate Permeate Reject Reject Precip. 2 Gel Volumetric Flow 3375 2160 1800 540 648 1099 Calcium mg/L as ion 0.02 0.00 71.13 0.10 41552 1604 Magnesium mg/L as ion 0.00 0.00 8.45 0.00 8411 159 Sodium mg/L as ion 3.59 0.04 5791.01 17.80 6150 10777 Potassium mg/L as ion 1.99 0.08 564.07 9.62 500 1352 Iron mg/L as ion 0.00 0.00 0 0.00 0 0 Manganese NA 0.00 NA 0.00 2 11 Aluminum NA 0.00 NA 0.00 0 Strontium 0.00 0.00 0.07 0.00 2 9 HCO3 mg/L as ion 5.52 1.31 1718.62 26.26 0 −2331 Bromide NA NA NA NA 0 −25 Fluoride mg/L as ion 0.00 0.00 0.95 0.00 327 258 Chloride mg/L as ion 0.85 0.02 336.27 4.17 262 554 Nitrate mg/L as ion 1.15 0.28 45.77 4.64 12 0 Phosphate mg/L as ion 1.08 0.04 2103.34 8.02 172233 20290 Sulfate mg/L as ion 11.56 0.74 15869.9 131.10 7512 373 pH s.u. 5.21 4.63 7.15 5.84 TDS mg/L as ion 28.17 2.81 30773 255.68 Ammonia mg/L as ion 9.64 0.34 3001.78 46.83 4089.00 Total Silica mg/L as ion 0.60 0.01 146.62 2.96 2750.3 723.63

TABLE 3B Trial Current Residence Time Electrode Silica In Silica Out Silica Reduction No. (A) (min) Configuration (ppm) (ppm) (ppm) 1 0.5 31 Al(+) | Al | Al | Al(−) 113 67 46 2 1.0 31 Al(+) | Al | Al | Al(−) 156 62 94 3 1.0 31 Fe(+) | Fe | Fe | Fe(−) 156 120 36 4 0.5 31 Fe(+) | Fe | Fe | Fe(−) 156 123 33 5 1.0 31 Al(+) | Fe | Al | Fe(−) 147 28 119 14 1.0 31 Al(+) | Al | Al(−) 142 69 73

TABLE 3C TESTS RESULT UNITS Aluminum (Al) 0.077 mg/l Bicarb (HCO3) 574.4 mg/l CaCO3 Bromide (Br) 6.05 mg/l CaCO3 Carbonate (CO3) 232.9 mg/l CaCO3 Chloride (Cl) 100 mg/l CaCO3 Fluoride (F) <1.00 mg/l CaCO3 Hydroxide (OH) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Nitrate (NO3) 15.4 mg/l CaCO3 Phosphate (PO4) 1190 mg/l CaCO3 Sulfate (SO4) 5910 mg/l CaCO3 Barium (Ba) <0.050 mg/l Calcium (Ca) 3.57 mg/l CaCO3 Iron (Fe) <0.020 mg/l Magnesium (Mg) 13.9 mg/l CaCO3 Manganese (Mn) <0.010 mg/l Potassium (K) 290 mg/l CaCO3 Sodium (Na) 5010 mg/l CaCO3 Free (CO2) 5.3 mg/l CaCO3 Copper (Cu) <0.020 mg/l Ammonia (NH3) 2248 mg/l CaCO3 pH 8.54 Total Silica (SiO2) 49.29 mg/l CaCO3 Silicon (Si) 28 mg/l Strontium (Sr) 0.031 mg/l Zinc (Zn) 0.023 mg/l

TABLE 3D TESTS RESULT UNITS Aluminum (Al) 0.087 mg/l Bicarb (HCO3) 1352.2 mg/l CaCO3 Bromide (Br) 8.17 mg/l CaCO3 Carbonate (CO3) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Chloride (Cl) 200 mg/l CaCO3 Fluoride (F) <1.00 mg/l CaCO3 Hydroxide (OH) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Nitrate (NO3) 21.6 mg/l CaCO3 Phosphate (PO4) 4470 mg/l CaCO3 Sulfate (SO4) 5890 mg/l CaCO3 Barium (Ba) <0.050 mg/l Calcium (Ca) 6.27 mg/l CaCO3 Iron (Fe) <0.020 mg/l Magnesium (Mg) 11.5 mg/l CaCO3 Manganese (Mn) <0.010 mg/l Potassium (K) 310 mg/l CaCO3 Sodium (Na) 5310 mg/l CaCO3 Free (CO2) 58.4 mg/l CaCO3 Copper (Cu) <0.020 mg/l Ammonia (NH3) 3325 mg/l CaCO3 pH 7.78 Total Silica (SiO2) 119.13 mg/l CaCO3 Silicon (Si) 87 mg/l Strontium (Sr) 0.032 mg/l Zinc (Zn) <0.020 mg/l Table 4 shows the results on silica concentration with a 1:1 ratio of silica to alum as a coagulant.

TABLE 4 TESTS RESULT UNITS Aluminum (Al) 0.281 mg/l Bicarb (HCO3) 474.4 mg/l CaCO3 Bromide (Br) 6.04 mg/l CaCO3 Carbonate (CO3) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Chloride (Cl) 169 mg/l CaCO3 Fluoride (F) <1.00 mg/l CaCO3 Hydroxide (OH) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Nitrate (NO3) 18.2 mg/l CaCO3 Phosphate (PO4) 1770 mg/l CaCO3 Sulfate (SO4) 6590 mg/l CaCO3 Barium (Ba) <0.050 mg/l Calcium (Ca) 4.24 mg/l CaCO3 Iron (Fe) <0.020 mg/l Magnesium (Mg) 0.858 mg/l CaCO3 Manganese (Mn) <0.010 mg/l Potassium (K) 260 mg/l CaCO3 Sodium (Na) 5080 mg/l CaCO3 Free (CO2) 62.1 mg/l CaCO3 Copper (Cu) <0.020 mg/l Ammonia (NH3) 3005 mg/l CaCO3 pH 7.24 Total Silica (SiO2) 45.48 mg/l CaCO3 Silicon (Si) 26 mg/l Strontium (Sr) <0.010 mg/l Zinc (Zn) <0.020 mg/l

Table 5 shows the control with no coagulant added.

TABLE 5 TESTS RESULT UNITS Aluminum (Al) 0.087 mg/l Bicarb (HCO3) 1352.2 mg/l CaCO3 Bromide (Br) 6.17 mg/l CaCO3 Carbonate (CO3) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Chloride (Cl) 200 mg/l CaCO3 Fluoride (F) <1.00 mg/l CaCO3 Hydroxide (OH) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Nitrate (NO3) 21.6 mg/l CaCO3 Phosphate (PO4) 4470 mg/l CaCO3 Sulfate (SO4) 5890 mg/l CaCO3 Barium (Ba) <0.050 mg/l Calcium (Ca) 6.27 mg/l CaCO3 Iron (Fe) <0.020 mg/l Magnesium (Mg) 11.5 mg/l CaCO3 Manganese (Mn) <0.010 mg/l Potassium (K) 310 mg/l CaCO3 Sodium (a) 5310 mg/l CaCO3 Free (CO2) 53.4 mg/l CaCO3 Copper (Cu) <0.020 mg/l Ammonia (NH3) 3325 mg/l CaCO3 pH 7.76 Total Silica (SiO2) 119.13 mg/l CaCO3 Silicon (Si) 67 mg/l Strontium (Sr) 0.032 mg/l Zinc (Zn) <0.020 mg/l

Table 6 shows the results on silica concentration when using an aluminum electrode in an electro-coagulation process.

TABLE 6 TESTS RESULT UNITS Aluminum (Al) 0.077 mg/l Bicarb (HCO3) 574.4 mg/l CaCO3 Bromide (Br) 6.05 mg/l CaCO3 Carbonate (CO3) 232.9 mg/l CaCO3 Chloride (Cl) 190 mg/l CaCO3 Fluoride (F) <1.00 mg/l CaCO3 Hydroxide (OH) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Nitrate (NO3) 15.4 mg/l CaCO3 Phosphate (PO4) 1190 mg/l CaCO3 Sulfate (SO4) 5910 mg/l CaCO3 Barium (Ba) <0.050 mg/l Calcium (Ca) 3.57 mg/l CaCO3 Iron (Fe) <0.020 mg/l Magnesium (Mg) 13.9 mg/l CaCO3 Manganese (Mn) <0.010 mg/l Potassium (K) 290 mg/l CaCO3 Sodium (Na) 5010 mg/l CaCO3 Free (CO2) 5.3 mg/l CaCO3 Copper (Cu) <0.020 mg/l Ammonia (NH3) 2246 mg/l CaCO3 pH 8.54 Total Silica (SiO2) 49.29 mg/l CaCO3 Silicon (Si) 28 mg/l Strontium (Sr) 0.031 mg/l Zinc (Zn) 0.023 mg/l

Table 7 shows the results on silica concentration when using a 1:1 ratio of silica to ferric salts as a coagulant.

TABLE 7 TESTS RESULT UNITS Aluminum (Al) 0.086 mg/l Bicarb (HCO3) 863.0 mg/l CaCO3 Bromide (Br) 6.14 mg/l CaCO3 Carbonate (CO3) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Chloride (Cl) 938 mg/l CaCO3 Fluoride (F) <1.00 mg/l CaCO3 Hydroxide (OH) 0.0 mg/l CaCO3 Nitrate (NO3) 24.0 mg/l CaCO3 Phosphate (PO4) 3180 mg/l CaCO3 Sulfate (SO4) 5810 mg/l CaCO3 Barium (Ba) <0.050 mg/l Calcium (Ca) 10.4 mg/l CaCO3 Iron (Fe) <0.020 mg/l Magnesium (Mg) 5.15 mg/l CaCO3 Manganese (Mn) <0.010 mg/l Potassium (K) 290 mg/l CaCO3 Sodium (Na) 5140 mg/l CaCO3 Free (CO2) 55.7 mg/l CaCO3 Copper (Cu) <0.020 mg/l Ammonia (NH3) 3240 mg/l CaCO3 pH 7.55 Total Silica (SiO2) 114.79 mg/l CaCO3 Silicon (Si) 64 mg/l Strontium (Sr) <0.010 mg/l Zinc (Zn) <0.020 mg/l

The phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. As used herein, the term “plurality” refers to two or more items or components. The terms “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,” “containing,” and “involving,” whether in the written description or the claims and the like, are open-ended terms, i.e., to mean “including but not limited to.” Thus, the use of such terms is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter, and equivalents thereof, as well as additional items. Only the transitional phrases “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of,” are closed or semi-closed transitional phrases, respectively, with respect to the claims. Use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” and the like in the claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed, but are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term) to distinguish the claim elements.

Having thus described several aspects of at least one embodiment, it is to be appreciated various alterations, modifications, and improvements will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Any feature described in any embodiment may be included in or substituted for any feature of any other embodiment. Such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be part of this disclosure and are intended to be within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description and drawings are by way of example only.

Those skilled in the art should appreciate that the parameters and configurations described herein are exemplary and that actual parameters and/or configurations will depend on the specific application in which the disclosed methods and materials are used. Those skilled in the art should also recognize or be able to ascertain, using no more than routine experimentation, equivalents to the specific embodiments disclosed. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of treating phosphogypsum-containing water, comprising: promoting precipitation of at least one target constituent from the phosphogypsum-containing water to produce a supernatant water; introducing a free metal or salt thereof to the supernatant water to provide a pretreated supernatant water; subjecting the pretreated supernatant water to membrane separation to produce treated water having at least one predetermined discharge requirement; and discharging the treated water.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein precipitation is promoted in a multi-stage process.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein calcium and/or magnesium is precipitated in a first precipitation step.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein phosphate is precipitated in a second precipitation step.
 5. The method of claim 2, further comprising adjusting a pH level of the phosphogypsum-containing water to a first pH level in the first precipitation step.
 6. The method of claim 5, further comprising adjusting the first pH level to a second pH level in the second precipitation step.
 7. The method of claim 4, further comprising a third precipitation step.
 8. The method of claim 3, further comprising recovering calcium fluoride from a precipitation slurry associated with the first precipitation step.
 9. The method of claim 4, further comprising recovering phosphate from a precipitation slurry associated with the second precipitation step.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the free metal or salt thereof is introduced to the supernatant water via chemical or electrolytic addition.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the free metal or salt thereof is an aluminum salt or an iron salt.
 12. The method of claim 10, further comprising recovering phosphate from the pretreated supernatant following introduction of the free metal or salt thereof.
 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the membrane separation involves one or more of nanofiltration, ultrafiltration, and reverse osmosis.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the membrane separation involves reverse osmosis and one of nanofiltration and ultrafiltration.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined discharge requirement pertains to a phosphorous or silica level.
 16. The method of claim 1, further comprising recycling at least one reject stream back to a source of the phosphogypsum-containing water.
 17. A system for treating phosphogypsum-containing water, comprising: a source of phosphogypsum-containing water; a pretreatment subsystem comprising at least one precipitation unit fluidly connected downstream of the phosphogypsum-containing water source; a source of a coagulant comprising a free metal or salt thereof fluidly connected to the pretreatment subsystem; a membrane separation subsystem fluidly connected downstream of the pretreatment subsystem and configured to produce treated water having at least one predetermined discharge requirement; and a treated water outlet.
 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the pretreatment subsystem comprises at least two precipitation units.
 19. The system of claim 17, wherein the source of the coagulant comprises an electrocoagulation subsystem.
 20. The system of claim 17, wherein the membrane separation subsystem comprises one or more of a nanofilter, an ultrafilter, and a reverse osmosis unit.
 21. The method of claim 20, wherein the membrane separation subsystem comprises a reverse osmosis unit and one of a nanofilter and an ultrafilter.
 22. The system of claim 17, wherein the pretreatment subsystem further comprises at least one clarifier.
 23. The system of claim 17, wherein the pretreatment subsystem further comprises at least one filter press.
 24. The system of claim 17, wherein the pretreatment subsystem further comprises a settling pond.
 25. The system of claim 17, further comprising a sensor configured to detect at least one operational parameter associated with the water source, the pretreatment subsystem, the membrane separation subsystem, or the treated water outlet.
 26. The system of claim 25, wherein the sensor is a flow rate, pH, temperature, conductivity, hardness, or concentration sensor.
 27. The system of claim 26, further comprising a controller in communication with the at least one sensor and configured to adjust at least one operational parameter of the system.
 28. The system of claim 27, wherein the controller is configured to adjust a flow rate or pH level in response to input from the sensor.
 29. The system of claim 27, wherein the controller is configured to adjust fractionation among the at least one precipitation unit in order to optimize phosphate recovery.
 30. The system of claim 27, wherein the controller is configured to adjust an amount of the coagulant introduced in order to optimize phosphate recovery. 